Pursuit & evasion

[iversonjm]

I know this has come up before but my opponent and I had different recollections of the answer:

Units 1 & 2 both evade from an initial charge. Unit 1 is caught. Unit 2 is not. Unit 1 fights in impact phase, and breaks. Unit 1's opponent pursues and contacts unit 2. Can unit 2 evade from the pursuit?

[babyshark]

I believe the answer is that a BG gets one chance to evade per impact phase. If the opponent's pursuit would let it contact BG3, then BG3 could evade (if of a type allowed to).

Marc

[petedalby]

Can unit 2 evade from the pursuit?

I believe so - yes

[iversonjm]

I'll go with Pete, as I was the one wanting to evade.

That does seem to make sense on a time and space basis. Pursuer gets to charge twice, target should evade twice.

[Ghaznavid]

Far as I remember from previous discussion the only time you can't evade again is if your original evade ends you in the charge path of another attacker. Since this isn't the case here the 2nd unit can evade again.

[philqw78]

I thought you could only evade once per phase.

[petedalby]

I thought you could only evade once per phase.

I can't find that written anywhere? Probably another Manchester thing.

Page 101, Initial Pursuit, refers to encountering fresh enemy and directs us to the JAP section. Page 108 is very clear that BGs that can evade may do so in any phase unless they're in close combat. The bold is mine. The final bullet requires skirmishers to pass a CMT to not evade from non-skirmishers.

I always try to hedge my bets when I reply to queries but I think this one is pretty clear cut. I'll now wait to be shot down in flames by one of the authors.

[philqw78]

I thought you could only evade once per phase.

I can't find that written anywhere? Probably another Manchester thing.

Your eyes would be opened if you ever came North of Basingstoke Pete.

[petedalby]

That's what worries me Phil!

[iversonjm]

There's also language some where in the JAP section (I don't have the book handy) that says that a unit contacted by a pursuer may evade unless in combat only as an overlap. There is a general rule of construction amongst us lawyer types (both rules and otherwise) that when both a rule and its exceptions are listed side-by-side, those exceptions are assumed to be exclusive. In this case that would mean that the only time that a unit contacted by a pursuer cannot evade is if it is in combat.

For liability purposes I must now insert the mandatory attorney disclosure emoticon:

[dave_r]

This is something that Terry told me. I should know better....

It has been confirmed by many people, but I have never actually found it in the rulebook anywhere. If somebody could I would be grateful.

[peterrjohnston]

Terry told you that you should know better? And many people have confirmed this? Not sure you'll find that in the rules though Dave

[hammy]

First we have:
Declare charges
Decide responses
Move evades
Move charges

If an evader happens to evade into the path of another charge then where in this sequence do they get to evade again?

Next we get:
Fight impact
Target routs
Take cohesion tests
Move routers
Additional targets of pursuers get to respond (CT if fragged or evade)
Move pursuers

A BG could in theory evade more than twice in one impact phase if a charging BG breaks its target on impact then caries through to the evaded BG chich evades revealing another target which gets hit and breaks allowing another charge which could contact the evaders etc.

[iversonjm]

To synthesize, we all seem to agree that the answer to your first question is "they don't get to evade again." No dispute there.

We were asking about the second circumstance, hit by an impact phase pursuer, and I gather from your response that the contacted unit CAN evade again.

Do I have that right?

[nikgaukroger]

Terry told you that you should know better? And many people have confirmed this? Not sure you'll find that in the rules though Dave

Terry told him and Phil seems to agree - bound to be wrong then

[grahambriggs]

This is something that Terry told me. I should know better....

It has been confirmed by many people, but I have never actually found it in the rulebook anywhere. If somebody could I would be grateful.

Every time I play Terry he gets loads wrong. Rules authors are poor judges of what the rules contain as they often remember the alternative rules that were considered or the reasoning for the rule or what they intended it to say, all of which is no use for telling you what the rules actually say.

In our last game, some of his LH Bow charged som of my LF. When these evaded the next thing was the flank of the Jaguar society led by Snake Woman. Terry thought the LH would stop at 1MU and be safe. They don't and weren't - autobroke in one bound

Of course that was my solitary success before my army collapsed

[dave_r]

In our last game, some of his LH Bow charged som of my LF. When these evaded the next thing was the flank of the Jaguar society led by Snake Woman. Terry thought the LH would stop at 1MU and be safe. They don't and weren't - autobroke in one bound

Why is this? I thought that the bit in pursuit states "skirmishers can always choose to halt their pursuit 1 MU away from fresh enemy non-skirmishers, and other troops can do so if they pass a CMT"?

EDIT: Ignore. Just found it.